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HISTORY of Israel: Timeline

Note: The 2010 edition is currently available only in English. Links to other languages are to previous editions.

'​זכר ימות עולם בינו שנות דור ודור... - דברים פרק ל"ב פסוק ז

Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations... (Deuteronomy 32:7)

The birthplace of the Jewish people is the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael). There, a significant part of the nation's long history was enacted, of which the first thousand years are recorded in the Bible; there, its cultural, religious, and national identity was formed; and there, its physical presence has been maintained through the centuries, even after the majority was forced into exile. During the many years of dispersion, the Jewish people never severed nor forgot its bond with the Land. With the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, Jewish independence, l​ost 2,000 years earlier, was renewed.

Archeology in Israel involves the systematic investigation of all the remains of the country's past - from prehistory to the end of Ottoman rule. The profusion of material remains is evidence of the many cultures that have left their imprint on the Land.

Above all archeological research clearly reveals the historical link between the Jewish people, the Bible and the Land of Israel, uncovering the remains of the cultural heritage of the Jewish people in its homeland. These visible remains, buried in the soil, constitute the physical link between the past, the present and the future of the Jewish people in its country.

This unbroken chain of history can be observed at sites all over the country. Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, has been the focus of extensive archeological activity and remains of 5,000 years of history have been revealed.

TIMELINE OF HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS

17th-6th C. BCE

BIBLICAL TIMES

(BCE - Before the Common Era)

c.17th century

Drawings byNoam Nadav

Abraham, Isaac, Jacob - patriarchs of the Jewish people and bearers of a belief in one God - settle in the Land of Israel.Famine forces Israelites to migrate to Egypt.

c.13th century

Exodus from Egypt: Moses leads Israelites from Egypt, followed by 40 years of wandering in the desert.Torah, including the Ten Commandments, received at Mount Sinai.

13th-12th centuries

Israelites settle in the Land of Israel

c.1020

Jewish monarchy established; Saul, first king.

c.1000

Jerusalem made capital of David's kingdom.

c.960

First Temple, the national and spiritual center of the Jewish people, built in Jerusalem by King Solomon.

c. 930

Divided kingdom: Judah and Israel

722-720

Israel crushed by Assyrians; 10 tribes exiled (Ten Lost Tribes).

586

Judah conquered by Babylonia; Jerusalem and First Temple destroyed; most Jews exiled.

THE SECOND TEMPLE PERIOD

538-142

Persian and Hellenistic periods

538-515

Many Jews return from Babylonia; Temple rebuilt.

332

Land conquered by Alexander the Great; Hellenistic rule.

166-160

Maccabean (Hasmonean) revolt against restrictions on practice of Judaism and desecration of the Temple

142-129

Jewish autonomy under Hasmoneans.

129-63

Jewish independence under Hasmonean monarchy.

63

Jerusalem captured by Roman general, Pompey.

63 BCE-313CE

Roman rule

63-4 BCE

Herod, Roman vassal king, rules the Land of Israel;Temple in Jerusalem refurbished

(CE - The Common Era)

c. 20-33

Ministry of Jesus of Nazareth

66

Jewish revolt against the Romans

70

Destruction of Jerusalem and Second Temple.

73

Last stand of Jews at Masada.

132-135

Bar Kokhba uprising against Rome.

c. 210

Codification of Jewish oral law (Mishna) completed.

FOREIGN DOMINATION

313-636

Byzantine rule

c. 390

Commentary on the Mishna (Jerusalem Talmud) completed.

614

Persian invasion

636-1099

Arab rule

691

On site of First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, Dome of the Rock built by Caliph Abd el-Malik.

Histadrut (General Federation of Labor) and Haganah (Jewish defense organization) founded.Vaad Leumi (National Council) set up by Jewish community (Yishuv) to conduct its affairs.

1921

First moshav (cooperative village), Nahalal, founded.

1922

Britain granted Mandate for Palestine (Land of Israel) by League of Nations; Transjordan set up on three-fourths of the area, leaving one fourth for the Jewish national home.Jewish Agency representing Jewish community vis-a-vis Mandate authorities set up.

Israel launches Operation Defensive Shield in response to massive Palestinian terrorist attacks.Israel begins building the anti-terrorist fence to stop West Bank terrorists from killing Israeli citizens.Prime Minister Sharon disperses the Knesset, calling for new elections to be held on 28 January 2003.